January 25, 2022 —  Last Saturday, we sent this special tribute edition of the cardie newsletter because, as many of you already know, Thich Nhat Hanh is considered very special indeed. And it was lovely to see so many follow-up emails from cardies sharing quotes of his that they consider favorites, gleaned from the more than 100 books on mindfulness and “engaged Buddhism” that the zen master wrote in his 95 years.

For those just learning more about him now, Thich Nhat Hanh was, along with the Dalai Lama, perhaps the world’s best-known Buddhist. It can be tricky to remember (until it isn’t anymore :) that “Thich,” a title similar to reverend, is pronounced “tick” and the monk name “Nhat Hanh” is said, “N’yaht Hahn.”

Exiled from his own homeland for speaking out in the turbulent ’60s, the peace activist lived most of his life in Plum Village, the monastery he founded in the south of France. “I do not know of anyone more worthy of the Nobel Peace Prize,” wrote Martin Luther King to the nominating committee, “than this gentle monk from Vietnam. Here is an apostle of peace and nonviolence.”

After seeing our tribute on Saturday morn, Contributing Cardie Mary Morini emailed, “I love that the New York Times’s obituary closed with the following quote. Especially good and timely wisdom for a restful weekend. Be well.”

“Do not try to find the solution
with your thinking mind.
Nonthinking is the
secret of success.
And that is why the time
when we are not working,
that time can be
very productive,
if we know how to
focus on the moment.”

Later that same morning, Contributing Cardie Pamela Salem O’Hagan reached out to say, “I had just finished writing down this Thich Nhat Hahn quote when I turned my eyes to my computer and saw your “Honoring Thich Nhat Hahn” tribute come in. What Synchronicity! Have a lovely day.”

“Every thing outside us
and every thing inside us
comes from the Earth.” 

And because many of his followers called him “Thay,” which is pronounced “Tie” and means teacher, we want to share this lesson our own beloved Cardie Yoga teacher, Paola Villages, recently re-learned. We love that this woman who lives and breathes such teachings would be courageously honest enough to tell this tale on herself to our group.

The day before the world learned of Thay’s passing, at the start of class, Paola shared with us that, “Yesterday, to avoid being sideswiped, I had to drive my car up onto the curb, which caused me two flat tires. I called for a tow truck and then waited, feeling more and more anxious that I would have to cancel a class I had coming up.” (Paola hates to be a minute late, much less cancel a class with no notice.)

“After an hour of waiting on the roadside, I called the towing company again asking, ‘When are you coming?!’ Hearing ‘still an hour away,’ I let my upcoming class know that I would be unable to fulfill my commitment that day. And then I grew more and more tense,” she said.

“After two hours, I called the towing company again. Then after three hours, called again, ‘Where are you?!’ I said and could feel myself becoming more stressed and frustrated and angry, and more and more unpleasant with the poor woman in dispatch who was just doing her job and trying to help me.”

“The seed of suffering in you
may be strong, but don’t wait
until you have no
more suffering before
allowing yourself
to be happy.”

“Finally, I did what I have trained my whole career to do. I closed my eyes and silently observed how my head was pounding, my heart racing, my stomach knotting, my fingers tingling. It might have taken me three hours, but in that moment I at last began to practice what I preach! I began the mindful breathing that always makes everything more manageable. I told myself, ‘This is a gift of time that you wouldn’t otherwise have. It was given to you and now you have a choice to either relax and receive it in a beautiful way, or experience it in an anxious way that will cause your mind and body to fill with tension you do not need. What is it going to be?’

“Only when I let go of the anger and frustration could I use the time productively,” Paola said to us. “I reopened my eyes and began using the time for planning and organizing and answering emails. I got so much done! It may have taken me three hours to remember to practice the mindfulness that I teach all day every day, but I’m grateful that I did not waste the entire seven hours that I sat there waiting for that tow!”

“Mindfulness is a kind of light
that shines upon
all your thoughts,
all your feelings,
all your actions
and all your words.”

And so it is. To all the teachers, great and small. Cardies, namaste.

Jodee Stevens
Founder & Chief Creative